Taxi Driver Online

Terry .................. you will attract very few HC members if you believe this [edited by admin].

I take it the GMB don't have any members in Brighton ................. in fact I don't see how you can expect to gain any further members with statements like that. What you should have said is "managed growth has had major benefits to everyone who visits or lives in Brighton, as professional drivers my members are assured of a future and can therefore supply the quality of vehicle recognised by the council as being conducive to best service".

Just like

I have now lost all faith in Unions ......... they promise everything but deliver LESS than nothing.

If anyone is considering joining the GMB (as long as Wolfie Smith is involved) then I would consider that they are trying to get more cabs on the road ........... and that means less work for everyone already on the ranks and streets.

B. Lucky

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"Here's a simple solution. If you don't want to pay more for a premium service then wait in the queue, problem solved".
Skull on TDO

TF pi$$ed on his chips.

GA the disabled speaker explained how she is marooned at home because of the POINT BLANK refusal of Hack to supply a service.
My members have a policy,we stated it and will pursue it.Meeting leader of council monday.Election due next May perhaps this issue just might be relevant to the way people vote.????Our press office MIGHT think it worth promoting.All the best WOLFIE.

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The views expressed by this contributor do not neccesarily reflect the policys of The GMB Nationally or of the GMB London Region.

So now union members must say f*** off to the disabled.

I say well done to Terry and whatever members he has, if any, along there.

And the local taxi trade were too embarrassed to comment. And so the gutless bunch should be.

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IDFIMH

And she lives within the town centre and has a rank at her front door.

I suggest that the case is that she has phoned a PH operator who is unable to provide a WAV, and is not required by the DDA to do so.

It stinks of the PH lead confusion over what is a taxi.

B. Lucky

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"Here's a simple solution. If you don't want to pay more for a premium service then wait in the queue, problem solved".
Skull on TDO

TF pi$$ed on his chips.

A wheel-chair bound lady wants a taxi.

Just because she can't walk down the road to the nearest rank, old dopey bollocks thinks she now wants a PH.

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IDFIMH

Terry I support your actions, and will be making recommendations that all private hire be wheelchair accessible, you're totally right disabled people at home should be able to telephoning for a private hire vehicle that is fully wheelchair accessible , I am glad you're making your members' views Clear, I'll e-mail a copy to the Department of Transport immediately, I am sure with your members help and the fact that they are volunteering to purchase wheelchair accessible vehicles it will not take long to implement, I also e-mail your recommendations to all disability groups and sure they will will be pleased at your members' generous offer. I am sure that you will have the full support of all National Taxi Association's..... I have obviously mistaken your intentions.

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Justice for the 96. It has only taken 27 years...........repeat the same lies for 27 years and the truth sounds strange to people!

The lady explained that she felt marooned at home.

Not marooned in the town centre, not marooned at a taxi rank MAROONED AT HOME.

I suggested that she may well have phoned a local PH firm who is not required to have any WAV's and so was not able to provide the transport requirement for he individual need.

If that PH firm used the word taxis within their name, then it would be fair to presume that she would conclude that not enough WAV's were on the taxi fleet.

Where in real terms another 500 WAV's licensed as HC would make little difference to her situation if none of them worked through that particular operation and so her opinion of the numbers of available vehicles suited to her needs would still be to low.

So I will ask you once again .............. how does the number of WAV HC alleviate her situation and provides an adequate service IF no PH operators are INCLUDED within the DDA and need to ensure this lady can have access to the transport she requires.

B. Lucky

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"Here's a simple solution. If you don't want to pay more for a premium service then wait in the queue, problem solved".
Skull on TDO

TF pi$$ed on his chips.

The woman mentioned doesn't even live in Brighton she lives in Adour which is not part of Brighton and Hove, why didn't she phone a company up who operate under Adour Council?

Sounds like a spoof letter to me.

From the reports on B&H council's site, the lady made a statement to the full-council.

One would have thought if she was telling fibs, your source Mr Peters would have had the balls to mention it then.

Not wait until it was all done and dusted.

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IDFIMH

word on the street bruv
is that plate holders are over the mooon about the council not dereging.
cant understand why.

three years time might be different.

For the record this lady works in Brighton. She has called all four taxi companys in the past and cannot book a taxi. Two of the companys are Hack associations with over 300 hacks between them. This is a trade problem both ph and hack. The real problem is that very few of the wav drivers both ph and hack will do wheelchair work. It is so bad that our LA issue a warning letter with licence applications telling WAV drivers they will be prosecuted if they are caught refusing a job. As a GMB member in Brighton (over 150 of us, 95% ph) are working on our own and with the local T&G to try many ways of solving this problem. The plate issue was only one. Over 30% of our local authoritys school work is given to any one who bids low enough regardless of standards or even licencing. We (Brighton GMB members assisted By Tery) are pressing the local authority to change the tender process to exclude anyone who does not reach their licencing standards. Hopefully if we win more guys will purchase WAVs covered by the knowledge of a 5 year contract to cover the cost.
Finally, to set another record straight, GMB members in Brighton voted against delimitation in Brighton on the grounds that it would be unjust and financially devastating on those who had purchased plates. We did vote to issue more plates to help improve the service to the disabled.
Finally, Finally, Terry has done a good job helping our lads in Brighton organise themselves and have representation the Ph drivers have never had before. The GMB are now the largest Hack/PH union in Brighton. Terry has spent loads of time down here organising and meeting council people to help our trade, both PH and Hack. Thank you Terry.

"Five year contract?" if you read the small print I will bet there is a termination clause of about 28 days. On both parties. Get your magnifying glass out and take a look. Supposing you were given a "5 year contract" worth £500 a week, and the client moved away, or passed away, do you believe your council would honour your "5 year" contract? Or if you moved away, or passed away,that you would be expected to honour that contract? What you have, in my opinion, is a 28 day rolling contract, and if anyone bought a vehicle to work a "five year" contract in the expectation that contract would RUN for five years, may well be in for a rude awakening. Only in football, would a five year contract be worth signing.

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Former taxi driver

Yes I agree every contract has a get out clause, the chance of that happening in my experience very slim, but thats not the point, the point in Brighton is working together to find a solution to providing a service to wav users. Any contructive help most welcome.

It's a "get out clause" that has frequently been used on me. I almost fell into the trap about ten years ago, when I was awarded a contract worth about £30,000 a year. Considered buying a new cab on the strength of it. contract terminated after two months of operation. Why? because they could. Not the only one, though. I've had contracts terminated through declining health, death, moving home, etc. Can't remember more than one contract that has completed it's stated term. I did though twice, claim against the county council for termination without notice or reasonable grounds, (their cock-ups) and was compensated (28 days notice not given) with four weeks payment. If you are going to buy a vehicle on the strength of a contract be VERY careful. If you cannot meet payments without the contract payments coming in, you could end up in the mire.

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Former taxi driver

So it seems that the real problem, and the cause of this lady's problem is driver attitude and not available vehicles.

Experience tells me that drivers who get a HC WAV, in the main, DO NOT get one to do wheelchair work but to work the ranks on a Friday and Saturday night.
I think the council are right to look at "punishing" drivers of WAV's who refuse to do wheelchair work, and possibly include the office within the same punishment.

Another problem, of which I have experience, is the idea that obtaining a school run will encourage more WAV purchases ...................... it does ........... but up here we found that the greatest demand for WAV's was during the times the WAV's were involved with their school runs.
The other thing is term of contract, if you commit to undertaking a run for a certain amount of money you are expected to complete that contract at that price.
We have a new framework for the provision of transport, with the term of contract being 3 years (with a possible 1 year extension). Within that we have to show the percentage of cost relating to fuel, this is so that if the fuel rises or falls by more than 5% for 2 consecutive months the charges made can be adjusted to cover the increased cost.

With regard Brighton, I don't think an extra 150 HC will do anything but increase driver hardship .......................... we have over 250 HC WAV's in our small town and the disabled community are still struggling at certain times to get a vehicle which services their requirements.

WE are addressing this problem through a review of our policies, which should be implemented very early in the new year.

B. Lucky

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"Here's a simple solution. If you don't want to pay more for a premium service then wait in the queue, problem solved".
Skull on TDO

TF pi$$ed on his chips.